1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to an apparatus for treating surfaces of wafer-shaped articles, such as semiconductor wafers, wherein one or more treatment fluids may be recovered from within a closed process chamber.
2. Description of Related Art
Semiconductor wafers are subjected to various surface treatment processes such as etching, cleaning, polishing and material deposition. To accommodate such processes, a single wafer may be supported in relation to one or more treatment fluid nozzles by a chuck associated with a rotatable carrier, as is described for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,903,717 and 5,513,668.
Alternatively, a chuck in the form of a ring rotor adapted to support a wafer may be located within a closed process chamber and driven without physical contact through an active magnetic bearing, as is described for example in International Publication No. WO 2007/101764 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,485,531.
An improved design for closed chamber single wafer wet processing is described in commonly-owned copending application U.S. Pub. No. 2013/0062839, in which a side door permits loading and removal of wafers into and from the process chamber, whereas process liquids and gases may be led into the chamber through a lid secured at the top of the closed process chamber.
Condensation of process vapors on surfaces of the workpiece or on interior surfaces of the chamber can cause undesired variation in process parameters, and droplets of the condensed liquid may even impact the delicate device structures formed on the workpiece, causing damage and reducing throughput.